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March 25, 2010

A New Weight-Loss Prescription

OK, here’s a question for all the women readers out there. Do you have 420 minutes a week to commit to exercising? I’ll save you the trouble of pulling out your calculator – that’s an hour a day, seven days a week.

You ask why? Because that’s the latest recommendation on exercise for women who want to avoid mid-lifeweight gain. According to a new study just published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, those 420 minutes of moderate-intensity exercise are necessary to avoid the slow-but-steady creep of poundage that accompanies middle age. In the study, only women who got at least an hour of moderate exercise daily were able to maintain their weight over time. Women who participated in higher intensity exercise (such as jogging) were able to cut their weekly exercise time down by about half; the more vigorous the exercise, the shorter time required to burn the same number of calories.

These new recommendations are considerably higher than previous guidelines. Past recommendations from very reputable groups have been as follows:

The American College of Sports Medicine teamed with the American Heart Association to offer the choice of one of these two exercise prescriptions:

Moderately intense cardio 30 minutes a day, five days a week (150 minutes)
Vigorously intense cardio 20 minutes a day, 3 days (60 minutes) a week and eight to 10 strength-training exercises, eight to 12 repetitions of each exercise twice a week
The Centers for Disease Control recommended the choice of one of these three possible programs:
2 hours and 30 minutes (150 minutes) of moderate-intensity aerobic activity (i.e., brisk walking) every week and muscle-strengthening activities on 2 or more days a week that work all major muscle groups (legs, hips, back, abdomen, chest, shoulders, and arms)
1 hour and 15 minutes (75 minutes) of vigorous-intensity aerobic activity (i.e., jogging or running) every week and muscle-strengthening activities on 2 or more days a week that work all major muscle groups (legs, hips, back, abdomen, chest, shoulders, and arms)
An equivalent mix of moderate- and vigorous-intensity aerobic activity and muscle-strengthening activities on 2 or more days a week that work all major muscle groups (legs, hips, back, abdomen, chest, shoulders, and arms)

But unfortunately, the new study says that these programs weren’t sufficiently calorie-burning enough to help women avoid weight gain, let alone to help women who actually need to LOSE weight.

And avoiding weight gain (or losing weight down to a healthy weight, and then maintaining that healthy weight) is a crucial goal. Our country has a staggering problem with obesity, with over 64% of adult women in the overweight or obese range. Health-care costs for people struggling with obesity are about 42% more than for people of normal weight.

Women who are overweight have an increased risk of all kinds of health problems, including heart disease, diabetes, certain cancers (endometrial, breast, colon, for example), high blood pressure, high cholesterol, stroke, liver and gallbladder disease, respiratory problems, sleep apnea, arthritis, abnormal menstrual periods, infertility. We’re talking problems that will decrease quality of life, if not longevity itself.

So maybe a better question should be: Can you afford not to find 420 minutes a week for exercise??

Here are some Everyday Health links for more information:

Wonder if you’re overweight? Check out the BMI calculator

Want some exercise ideas? You can learn about how many calories are burned during various types of exercise

Tips for aligning your diet with your workout

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